


Speechless

by bookworm03



Category: Parks and Recreation
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Heartbreak, Meet-Cute, Scuba Diving, Sexual Content, Vacation, tropical vacations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-22
Updated: 2016-09-22
Packaged: 2018-08-16 15:47:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8108227
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bookworm03/pseuds/bookworm03
Summary: All Leslie wanted was to go to Belize and go SCUBA diving with her cute boyfriend...until she wanted something else entirely.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! This was just a silly idea I had! It's some fluffy, light, end of summer fun! I hope you enjoy!

It was a perfect day for getting SCUBA certified. 

The sun was beating down on her neck and shoulders, her legs were actually on the conservative side of golden. Chad was standing next to her, all broad shouldered and slightly pasty with a t-shirt covering his tummy.

He was always whining about how out of shape he was now and that she made too many cookies, but Leslie loved the tummy.

She rubbed it lightly while they waited for their instructor to arrive. Chad wasn’t exactly thrilled about diving and had been playing games on his cell phone during the safety video a few minutes before, but he was obviously thrilled to be in Belize. The turquoise waters and sandy beaches were the perfect thing to take his mind off a horrible month at work.

He’d been putting himself through the ringer, staying at the office until almost midnight and barely having time for a meal together, let alone a sleepover. But it was just a rough patch and now things were settling and they could get back on track.

Which was why Leslie had surprised him with a romantic vacation. Sure, it was a little pricey for someone she’d only been dating for five months, but Chad was great and things were serious already...

She was pretty sure. It wasn’t exactly a conversation they had had, but she planned to talk to him about it on this trip over frozen drinks and live music. They’d been dating for five months and he agreed to go to Belize with her - of course it was getting serious.

“Are you having fun?” she pushed up on her tiptoes and moved for his lips, but got his jaw instead. He patted her hip.

“Yeah...it’s pretty cool. I guess.”

“And tonight we’ll have dinner at the hotel and then go out dancing and listen to music and take a long walk on the beach. And tomorrow we can go hiking and - ”

“I’d rather just lie on the beach instead of running around like an insane person while I’m on vacation.”

Leslie’s cheeks grew warm. Of course he wanted that. He was tired and wanted to relax, just because she couldn’t sit still didn’t mean Chad had to be the same.

“Whatever you want” she beamed. “This is  _ your  _ vacation.” 

“Except for the part where you’re making me go SCUBA diving.”

Now she frowned. “After SCUBA diving this is your vacation.”

“Great” Chad meandered down the deck to speak with another guy in their group who looked to be in his thirties. The other man - Doug? His name might be Doug - wrapped an arm around a petite woman with a tiny waist and long brown hair.

Leslie considered going up to join their obviously pleasant conversation, when a man in swim trunks and flip flops strolled down the pier with a clipboard in hand. He face was partially covered by Ray Bans and his hair was wild and everywhere. 

He called out to them, asking everyone to get on the boat.

“I’m Ben” the instructor waved awkwardly. He had a slight build, but his forearms rippled with lean muscle and his legs were surprisingly not scrawny. “I’ll be taking you out to the dive site. We’ll get you fitted for equipment once we get there. Does anyone have any questions?”

Leslie almost thrust her hand up to ask what type of  _ reg _ they’d be using, but Chad shot her a look and she kept quiet instead.

Ben motioned to the boat’s captain. “Let’s get going then.”

*****

“Are we using a first stage or second stage regulator?” Leslie asked as Ben adjusted her gear. He arched an eyebrow and his lips twitched. His hair was ridiculous and giant, but there was an overall warmth to him she liked.

“First stage. Is that okay?”

Okay, Ben was definitely teasing her.

“Yes.”  She answered certainly. He wasn’t exactly tall, not nearly as tall as Chad, but he towered over her like most people did.

“You did your homework.”

“I made a binder for SCUBA diving. That’s the only way to do something right and if you’re not going to do it right, what’s the point.”

Ben shot her a funny look as he handed back the mask. A big arm slid around Leslie and Ben glanced up.

“Need help, babe?”

“I’m fine” Leslie bit her lip as Chad leaned down for a noisy kiss. She smiled against him and when she turned back Ben was off helping someone else. The pretty brunette was slipping into her wetsuit and Chad patted Leslie’s hip and told her he’d see her in the water before heading back to where he had been.

Leslie took a deep breath and pulled her mask over her head. Honestly, she was a  _ teensy _ bit nervous about plunging beneath the depths, but she knew it would be worth it when she did.

She took another breath while sitting on the edge of the boat before launching herself backwards into the water.

No time like the present.

*****

The reef was _ amazing _ . There were schools of fish zooming around corners and even brushing against her feet. It was shallow, so she could graze the tips of her fingers against the sand, and there was brightly colored coral as far as they eye could see. The water was clear and cool, refreshing...

Magic. It felt almost magical being down there, as if she’d descended into Oz or something.

Chad kept veering to the left and right with different sections of the group and Leslie would kick hard to keep up with him while still taking a million pictures. She sort of wished he would slow down because there was so much to  _ see _ , but they were only SCUBA diving because Leslie wanted to. He was probably trying to find a reef shark or something.

About halfway through the venture she caught up and reached for Chad’s hand, which he gave her. They even exchanged little smiles around their masks. It was very romantic.

God, she was so happy. Here she was on a beautiful island, swimming through a coral reef with a great guy who had said yes to her spontaneous vacation idea.

When she asked the pretty brunette to take a picture of her and Chad he obliged, pulling her in front of him as his fingers dug into her sides.

In their blissful, underwater haze, Leslie was suddenly overcome with feelings of affection. She cared a lot about this man and he cared about her. Maybe this would be a story they told at their wedding, a turning point in their relationship where they transitioned from dating to a serious couple with a real future.

Leslie tugged on Chad, reaching down to the sand and pushing her index finger into it as she spelled out three words. They would take another picture of each other in front of the words smiling and Ann would die when she saw it.

Except, that was not what happened.

Chad studied her imprint for five full seconds before yanking his hand away and shooting up towards the surface of the water. Leslie yelped, bubbles flying around her, and a few heads in their group turned. About halfway up, Chad’s body sort of went limp and a dark figure appeared, latching onto his arm and guiding him the rest of the way.

Everyone else in the group followed, but Leslie took the time to smear her words out of the sand before she did the same.

She was almost at the surface when her eyes grew hot and her vision started to blur. She was crying. Crying because Chad would rather risk decompression sickness than have to deal with the fact that she…

Crying because she felt that way and he so very much did not.

Crying because she always cared way too much about everything, including relationships.

She was full on sobbing by the time she ripped her mask off and started heaving mouthfuls of fresh air like she couldn’t get enough of it. Thankfully, everyone was on the boat and tending to Chad, who was on his back with a towel on his forehead.

“He’ll be fine” Mitch, a doctor on holiday with his wife - declared. “But he definitely needs to rest.”

Leslie heard Ben say something about radioing for another boat to meet them and take Chad back to the resort.

“Where’s Leslie?” Mitch’s wife, whose name escaped her, asked. “Does she know?”

“Weren’t they diving together?”

“I thought she came up with us.”

Leslie swiped at her face and then dipped a little under the water to wash away the tear streaks. A pair of bare feet appeared at the edge of the boat and two big hands stretched out in front of her.

Ben, whose eyes she could now see. They were a rich brown with flecks of gold and filled with concern.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes” she croaked and Ben’s frown deepened.

“Mitch says he’s going to be fine…” he trailed off as Leslie swiped at her eyes again. This was humiliating, crying in front of a SCUBA instructor she’d known for all of three hours.

“Alright” Ben pulled her straight out of the water with a surprising display of strength. Leslie dripped on the deck as Ben undid the back of her wetsuit and checked her face again.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yes.”

“I called a boat to come get you guys so you can take him back to the room to rest.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

Was she thankful? Not really. She kind of wanted to disappear back into the ocean and never hear Chad’s name again.

Especially when the pretty brunette delicately pushed his hair off his forehead and asked if he needed  _ anything at all _ .

*****

The boat ride back was tense and Leslie honestly wished she’d been able to stay with the group and at least get her money’s worth. This trip was already costing her a pretty penny and Chad’s reaction to her feelings had clearly broken whatever there was between them.

A medic met them at the boat to help Chad down and they were led back to their room where he was deposited on the bed and ordered to take it easy.

“Leslie?” her still-boyfriend croaked pathetically.

“What?”

“Can you close the blinds please?”

She trudged over to the window and did so, settling on a chair instead of the end of the bed.

“Should...we should talk about what happened?”

Chad sighed.

“Not now - ”

“We need to - ”

“I just thought we were seeing other people and then you spring that on me. It was a lot. You know commitment is hard for me.”

A lump formed in her throat. How had she been so naive? He’d been seeing other women this entire time and he definitely hadn’t been working all those late nights.  

“Sorry” he patted her knee. “I thought you knew. But hey, this trip was a great idea and last night was fun.”

Leslie’s skin started to crawl when she recalled getting into bed with him the night before. She had to get out of there.

“Can you order me a burger and some fries too? I’m starving. We can just put it on the room bill, right?”

The room bill she was paying for.

Twenty minutes later, with no more mention of a burger, Chad was snoring peacefully. Leslie packed her suitcase and left without so much as a note.

*****

She called Ann from a payphone in the lobby after speaking with the airline. To leave now would cost an arm and a leg, but she really didn’t know what point there would be to staying. Ann convinced Leslie she  _ should _ stay and get drunk and find a hot cabana boy because  _ screw Chad _ .

After her conversation with Ann, Leslie found herself at the reception counter, explaining that she wanted to check out of her current room and get a new one.

The woman kept asking if there was a problem with the accommodations and Leslie kept saying no, she just  _ needed _ different ones. The woman then asked where her boyfriend was and Leslie bit back a whimper.

“Uh, hi” a vaguely familiar voice interjected. Leslie turned to see Ben, the SCUBA instructor, leaning against the marble. He was wearing the same thing he had been that morning, but his hair was a little damp.

“Hi.” 

“How’s...Chad?”

“I don’t know.”

She swallowed hard and gave her head a quick shake.

“Did...he die?” Ben’s eyes widened in horror.

“ _ No _ ,” that was almost enough to make Leslie crack a smile. “We broke up!”

“Oh,  _ oh _ ” he scrubbed at his cheek. “I’m sorry.”

The woman behind the counter’s eyes widened. She finally understood.

“And it’s on your credit card.”

“Yes.”

“Say no more, honey. He can pay the rest of the bill himself.”

“Thank you.”

“Are...you staying?”

Leslie glanced over at Ben. “It was so expensive to get a flight out, my best friend convinced me I should.”

Concern was etched on Ben’s features, the same way it had been when he pulled her out of the water earlier.

“You should” he inclined his head. “It’s a big beach.” 

“Here’s your room key, Ms. Knope. We had a vacancy in one of the suites, but I’m just charging  you the price of the standard.”

Leslie audibly gasped.

“One of the huts in the water?!”

“That’s right. Is that okay?”

“YES!” she cleared her throat. “I mean. Yes. That would be fine. Thank you.”

“I’ll get someone to help you with your bags - ”

“I’ll do it, Sarah. Thanks.”

Leslie accepted the key and Sarah told Ben she was in hut number 12. He hefted her suitcase and strolled through the palacious lobby towards the back terrace and a path that led down towards the suites.

He said nothing on the way, except that they’d missed her during the rest of the dive.

“Nobody was taking nearly enough pictures” he teased, before picking her bag up and leading the way down a wooden dock to a tiny building at the end of it. Her hut. She had her own hut.

She should have boyfriends embarrass her on vacation more often.

Ben pushed the door open and in an instant, her break up was forgotten. The floors and walls were made of wood, with low hanging beams and a large white bed in the center of the room.

But the view, the view was the most spectacular thing she’d ever seen. In every direction it was only crystal blue water for miles.

“Nice, right?”

She nodded, a little unable to believe her good fortune. Ben smirked as he lifted her suitcase onto a stand and asked if she was alright.

“I’m amazing” she gasped. “This is amazing. I tried to book one of these but they were expensive and then they didn’t have any left for this week…”

“Right” Ben turned to face her. “Well...you should go down to the beach or something, go for a swim, relax. Don’t let him…” he rubbed his cheek. “Can I...do you mind me asking what happened?”

“I told him I loved him and he shot up so fast he got the bends.”

Ben snorted into his hand and Leslie squawked and smacked his arm. “It’s not funny!”

“Sorry, sorry.”

“It’s nooooot. I’m very lovable!”

“I’m sure you are” he ran a hand through his hair, making it ridiculously messy. “I’m sure you’re very lovable.”

“I am!”

“And you should go to the beach.”

She smiled.

“Get yourself a fruity drink and lie under an umbrella. And hey, if you want, you can come diving tomorrow with...I wouldn’t...I’d make sure they didn’t charge you, obviously.”

She seriously needed to get humilated more often.

And a fruity drink sounded amazing, even if a part of her just wanted to crawl into bed and be sad for a little while.

“So...if you want to come tomorrow same time, just show up and we’ll make it happen, okay?”

“Okay.”

He gave her a little nod and set her key on the nearest table before disappearing out the door.

*****

After moping around her room and staring out the windows for an hour, Leslie decided to take Ben’s advice. She changed into her bathing suit and a cover up and headed down towards the beach. On the way, she stopped at the bar to order the sweetest, most alcohol-laden drink they offered.

She didn’t nap, but she definitely relaxed, choosing to sip her beverage and stare at the swimmers and beach goers. Children shrieked and pushed sand at each other, couples walked hand-in-hand while stealing kisses and SCUBA Instructor Ben appeared out of nowhere and made a beeline for her.

“Hey” he smiled and it might’ve been the rum, but her heart definitely fluttered a little, which seemed impossible given how sad she was and how much money she was out having tried to do a nice thing for a man who was sleeping with other people.

“Hi” she sat up a little too fast. “Are you done for the day?”

“Yeah” he motioned to the end of her beach chair and Leslie gestured at it. Ben sat. “How are you doing?” 

“I’m sad, I guess. I thought he was my boyfriend and I spent all this money on a nice and he was seeing other girls the whole time and probably lying about where he was at night and not working late, so the trip I planned because he was working hard was a sham. I planned a sham trip!”

She said all of this very fast and Ben removed his sunglasses.

“You’re relaxing though, right?”

“Uh huh.”

He grinned and shifted.

“So, I’m uh, I’m glad I saw you actually, because they apparently just got some fresh lobster in and they’re featuring it at the restaurant tonight and if you were looking for a place to eat you should definitely try it.”

“Oh…” she bit her lip. She was planning on ordering ice cream for dinner but lobster did sound delicious. “Chad might be there. We were going to go there tonight.”

“Right” Ben cocked his head. “Well, Chad shouldn’t stop you from eating lobster.”

Leslie grinned.

“So...just...do what you want, obviously, but think about it.”

“Are you going?”

_ Wow, where did that come from?  _ That was way too borderline-flirty for someone who had just had her relationship end.

“Uhhh” she couldn’t be certain, but it seemed like Ben’s cheeks flushed. “I...hadn’t thought about it…” he bit his lip and it was confusingly attractive. “I’ll see what I’m doing, maybe. I do love lobster.”

“Cool.”

“Cool” he bit his lip. “So, maybe see you later?”

“Maybe!”

He patted her foot, stood and headed back down the beach. Leslie flopped back on her chair and squeezed her eyes shut, feeling a little disloyal to herself for anything stirring inside her around Ben. He was sweet, but she’d just told Chad she loved him hours before.

And yes, Chad had rejected her, but those feelings didn’t go away that easily. If she’d meant it she should still mean it, even if they were broken up…

Or something.

The fact that Ben’s mouth was cute should have no bearing on her feelings towards Chad.

*****

She was eating the most delicious pasta appetizer of her entire life when Ben plunked down in the chair opposite her.

“Can I join you?”

“Yes” she answered way too quickly, but he was already sitting in front of her. “I ordered the lobster.”

“Me too. I told them to send it over here...if that’s okay.” 

“It is.”

“You uh...you look nice.”

Leslie’s stomach twisted as his warm eyes locked on hers. “Thank you.”

“You know he’s a major dick, right?” Ben announced as a frosty beer was delivered to their table. Leslie blinked.

“What?” 

“ _ Chad _ . He’s a dick. He only paid attention to you when you were talking to someone…to another guy...”

Leslie fought the urge to defend Chad as Ben took a long sip of beer.

“He pulled himself onto the boat on the dock and he didn’t even help you up. There were four couples in our group and he’s the only one who didn’t even...and he kept swimming away from you and whining about being there. He’s a dick, Leslie.” 

“Why are you telling me this?”

Ben shrugged his shoulders.

“You...you seem sweet and you did something nice and said something nice and he...doesn’t deserve that.”

Leslie couldn’t help the smile that formed on her face as the server appeared and asked if she’d like another drink.

“We were supposed to go dancing after dinner.”

She twirled some more pasta on her fork, a wave of heat washing over her skin.

“At...out on the patio?”

“Right! With the music!”

“I’ll...do you wanna go dancing?”

Her jaw popped open.

“Only...if you want...”

“Do you like dancing?” she interjected.

“Uhhhh, sure. I love it.”

Leslie beamed and Ben smiled back crookedly.

“Great” she clinked her glass with Ben’s. “To dinner and dancing.”

“And lobster” he added, taking another sip of his beer.

*****

There was no urgency in how he kissed her.

His lips were firm, but tender and wet but not sloppy. His tongue moved with purpose and his hand was tangled in the back of her head as he pinned her against the door to her suite. It was as if they had all the time in the world.

It was hard to remember exactly how it started, but Leslie was fairly certain it had something to do with dancing and more to do with alcohol. Ben’s face was adorable and his lips looked like they needed kissing and they’d ended up doing that, right in the middle of the dance floor.

She yanked on his shirt, thrusting her tongue deeper into his mouth. Ben groaned.

“Leslie, Leslie” his hand slid to cup her neck and he drew back.  

“You’ve had a lot to drink.”

“I haven’t.”

He chuckled, pushing his nose into her neck and exhaling.

“I swear I wasn’t trying to seduce you” he whispered. “You should tell me to go away.”

“I don’t want you to go away” she cupped his face and pulled his gaze to hers. “I want you to come inside. I’ve been sad all day and now I’m not.”

Ben dropped his forehead to hers. “You’re drunk.”

“I know what I want, Benjamin!”

He smiled and rubbed her hip.

“Leslie - ”

“No more talking” she flung the door open and yanked him forward. Ben growled and obeyed, pushing her through the room and onto the bed.

She fell with a bounce and Ben pulled away to lock up behind them. While he was fumbling with the deadbolt Leslie pulled off her sundress and he stumbled a little in his effort to get back to her.

“Good lord” he slid his hand over her bare stomach. “Leslie - ”

“No talking” she ordered again. Ben zipped his lips and yanked his shirt over his head. He was lithe, wiry and pale but she couldn’t forget the way he’d lifted her out of the water that morning.

She imagined him lifting her off the bed and a flood of need pulsed through her center.

“You’re a great kisser” she whispered. Ben nipped at her neck, peeling her panties away and tossing them to the floor. There was a glint in his eyes when he dragged his tongue along the swell of her breast.

“No talking” he kissed her stomach, biting and licking the whole way down to her thighs. 

She made a lot of noise after that, but she certainly wasn’t forming words.

He might not be a hot cabana boy or her boyfriend she thought she was in love with, but what Ben was giving Leslie was exactly what she needed tonight.

She’d been right after all - spontaneous vacations were the best.


End file.
